Chapter 22….
Samjeol (1)
Startled by the bold declaration aimed at him, Muchi floundered, unsure what to do.
“Ah… uh…”
Seeing this, Yuri’s lips curled upward in a wicked grin.
In the next instant, his figure shot forward.
Tak—.
In just a few steps, the six-meter distance was compressed.
Shaak—.
A silver blade streaked toward Muchi’s throat.
“…?!”
It was an ambush executed in the blink of an eye.
Ralph was standing beside Muchi, yet even as his grandson faced danger, he showed no particular reaction.
Instead, he simply watched Yuri with mildly interested eyes.
That was possible because he trusted the grandson he had trained.
As if to repay that trust, Muchi responded to Yuri’s attack as though it were only natural.
“W-wait!”
Despite the panicked shout, Muchi reflexively swung the wooden spear in his hand.
Of course, Yuri merely snorted.
“Like I’m going to wait.”
The blade that had been heading for Muchi’s neck suddenly veered mid-path.
A direction change executed in an instant.
Sskak—.
The wooden spear was cleanly sliced apart, and Yuri quickly retreated, sheathing his sword.
It was as if the spear had been his target from the start.
He looked at Muchi as though asking what he would do now.
Watching this, Ralph smirked and reached out.
The forge doors shattered, and something flew into Ralph’s hand.
Kwachik—.
Coiled in Ralph’s grip was a massive halberd faintly glowing red.
A length easily reaching four meters.
If not for the protruding spearhead, it might have looked like a bizarre cleaver stuck onto a pole.
It was Halcyon—Ralph’s beloved weapon that had accompanied him through countless battlefields.
Ralph tossed it toward his grandson.
Pat!
Halcyon embedded itself in the ground before Muchi.
“Grandfather?”
Despite his grandson’s call, Ralph gave no answer and instead shuffled over to stand beside Johan.
Left alone with Muchi in the wide clearing, Yuri tilted his sword.
“What are you doing? Not picking it up? Planning to fight empty-handed?”
“Why…?”
Muchi couldn’t understand why Yuri was going this far.
The question seemed to reach Yuri.
His lips twisted.
“Curious? Why I’m doing this?”
Nod—.
“Want me to tell you?”
Nod, nod—.
As Muchi nodded repeatedly, Yuri flashed a mischievous eye-smile and shouted,
“Nope. Not telling!”
While Muchi stood dumbfounded by the childish taunt, Yuri launched himself forward again.
Another charge.
This time, he was much faster than before.
Seeing Yuri rushing in, Muchi hesitated.
Should he grab Halcyon or not?
But that kind of hesitation was a luxury.
“Get your head straight!”
As if sensing his indecision, Yuri swung his sword without the slightest hesitation.
The blade came surging in, brimming with killing intent.
In that fleeting moment, Muchi’s pupils shook violently.
This guy… he’s serious!
Yuri’s killing intent toward him was real.
Faced with the possibility of death, Muchi’s survival instinct kicked in.
And finally—
Thud.
Muchi grabbed Halcyon.
Kang—!
The halberd’s shaft snapped like a whip, leaving an afterimage as it knocked Yuri’s sword aside.
Then it immediately shot toward Yuri’s upper body.
Using that very force, Yuri’s deflected sword traced a circle and came back around.
Kang—!
This time Yuri’s blade deflected Muchi’s spear—
Whoosh—!
The shaft swept past his head, generating a fierce gust of wind, and Yuri shouted excitedly,
“What’s this? You can fight just fine when you try!”
At Yuri’s shout, Muchi gritted his teeth and tried to widen the distance.
But Yuri wouldn’t allow it.
“Hey now—where do you think you’re going?”
A four-meter halberd.
A 1.2-meter sword.
Now that he was right up close, this was Yuri’s ideal range.
He had no intention of giving up that advantage.
Smiling brightly, Yuri swung his sword.
Skang!—Tang—.
Sharp metallic clashes rang out in succession.
Sparks flew between the two weapons as offense and defense crossed rapidly.
Kang—Taaang!
Yuri and Muchi separated and closed again at astonishing speed.
It was completely different from six months ago, when Yuri had been blown away in a single strike.
This was the result of Yuri’s physique, forged through brutal training.
Of course, it had only been six months.
He still couldn’t match Muchi, who had spent nearly ten years building his fundamentals with Ralph’s physical gifts.
What filled that gap in training time was…
“…What monstrous combat sense.”
Yuri’s innate battle instinct.
Evasive movements pared down to the bare minimum.
Perfectly measured spacing.
Actions that read the opponent’s next move and step ahead.
This was not the skill of someone who had held a sword for only six months.
Ralph stared at Yuri in surprise.
What is this—he’s a completely different person.
Back in their first spar, Yuri had misjudged that Muchi wouldn’t attack and rushed in recklessly, only to be knocked flat.
Was that really the same person?
Back then… he simply didn’t know how to use the talent he was given.
Which meant that in just six months, he had raised his senses to this level.
Compared to Muchi… no, this isn’t even comparable. It’s overwhelming.
No matter how much he doted on his grandson, he had to admit what was obvious.
Yuri’s combat sense—and his ability to learn in battle—far surpassed Muchi’s.
But that admiration didn’t last long.
“Hey, hey! That’s all you’ve got? Skip breakfast or something? Why so weak? Put some strength into it!”
Even while continuing his attacks, Yuri’s mouth never stopped moving.
Ralph let out a sigh and asked to the side,
“…Did you teach him that too?”
“Teach what?”
“Running his mouth to provoke while fighting. He’s acting exactly like you, senior.”
“You little—! That’s just his personality! What teaching are you talking about?!”
Johan glared angrily.
Ignoring him with ease, Ralph watched Yuri with an intrigued gaze.
Not bad.
Though the live-blade spar had begun abruptly, Ralph didn’t feel displeased at all.
If anything, he was grateful to Yuri.
This is Muchi’s first real live-blade match too.
He had trained with real weapons before, but there had been no suitable partner for a true live spar.
Under these circumstances, sparring with someone his own age like Yuri would be valuable experience.
Still, Ralph worried about his grandson’s temperament.
How will a boy who even avoids sparring deal with Yuri charging recklessly with a live blade?
Moreover, the Yuri who had grown over the past six months was no longer someone who could simply be “suppressed” like before.
If things moved beyond his control, how would Muchi respond?
Curious about that, Ralph had even brought out Halcyon himself to match Yuri’s pace.
And it looks like this Yuri brat has something in mind too.
With a slightly more serious expression, Ralph watched the two boys’ live-blade duel.
Kang—Chuk—.
Weapons continued to collide between Yuri and Muchi, sparks flying.
Five minutes. Ten. Fifteen. Twenty.
Their fierce battle showed no signs of stopping.
Drip—tap—.
Meanwhile, small raindrops began falling from the darkening sky.
Kang—Tang!
Pitter—patter—.
The sharp clang of metal.
The soft drizzle tapping the roof.
The rapidly flying killing intent.
Yuri clinging like a leech.
The desperate urge to break free.
All of it began to press down on Muchi’s psyche.
Why… why…?
I just wanted to get along…
I don’t want to fight other people.
If I hurt someone… they’ll call me a monster again.
I really hate that.
Why… why is Brother Yuri going this far?
Can’t we just be friends?
Countless thoughts drove Muchi further into a corner.
Something swelled tighter and tighter in his chest.
Unable to bear it any longer, Muchi finally burst out,
“Aaaah—stop it!”
With the massive shout, a red light of mana exploded from Muchi’s entire body.
“…?!”
Sensing the sudden danger, Yuri immediately leapt backward.
For the first time since the duel began, he widened the distance.
Meanwhile, the surging red aura flowed along Muchi’s forearms, and the long shaft of the halberd bent fluidly.
Left. Right.
Swell.
Up. Down.
Surge.
The massive halberd whipped as if defying physics, carving red lines through the air each time.
Schnell Axe-Spear Technique.
Madness (狂亂).
One of the ultimate techniques that had earned Ralph Schnell the nickname Butcher revealed itself.
A chill ran down Yuri’s spine.
One, two, three, four—
The crimson energy multiplied exponentially, gradually dominating the surroundings. Each strand carried terrifying destructive power.
The moment he realized this, Johan’s words flashed through Yuri’s mind:
[People see Ralph’s build and assume he uses brute force spearwork. Sure, he’s monstrously strong… but the direction that bastard truly pursues is flashy, technique-centered spearwork.]
Back then, Yuri had only understood it intellectually.
But watching the dazzling red trajectories Muchi produced, the phrase flashy technique-centered spearwork became vividly real.
Shu-shu-shuk—.
The paths drawn by Muchi’s mana and blade contained not only power but perfect calculation.
Even those seemingly wild swings… are actually carefully laid traps, huh?
A dazzling number of techniques built atop overwhelming strength.
That was the driving force that had made Ralph the master of the axe-spear.
And that force had clearly been passed down to Muchi.
Seeing the layered red net spreading like a web, Yuri smirked.
Is this your way of saying don’t come closer?
Muchi’s mana completely dominated a fixed area.
It was like a warning directed at him.
Don’t come any closer.
Stop tormenting me!
Feeling it clearly, Yuri curled his lips in mockery.
Already? We’re just getting started.
The only problem was how to break through that.
“Hm…”
The tangled red trajectories were not easy to touch, and even if he did, there was no telling how they would change.
He was outmatched in power.
And reading and countering the technique was difficult.
Then there was only one method.
Dodge everything and break through.
Yuri’s eyes flashed.
He believed.
In what Johan had told him—
[The axe-spear art Ralph created is definitely a top-tier body technique. Power, skill—nothing lacking. But there’s one person he’s never beaten. Who? Who else—me, of course!]
—and in the effort he had poured in.
[Of course, the biggest reason is that I’m a genius incomparable to that muscle pig… but the real reason I never lost to him is compatibility.]
For the past six months,
he had run the mountains every single day until his legs were on the verge of bursting.
Whether the weather was clear or cloudy.
Whether it rained or the wind howled.
Even when he fell, rolled, tore his skin, and bled—he ran every day.
[His weapon is heavy, and his martial art pushes destructive power to the extreme, so each movement inevitably becomes large. Sure, he compensates with refined technique… but the Redner family’s body art isn’t slow enough to get hit by attacks that sluggish.]
The reason Yuri had run until he nearly collapsed every day was simple.
[Consider it an honor. You’ve learned the fastest and freest body technique in the world.]
Because then—
“—one day, I’ll be able to step on the clouds.”
Tak.
The moment Yuri’s foot powerfully struck the ground—
Redner Family Secret Body Technique.
Cloud Step
Woooong—.
His mana core pulsed, forcefully pouring mana into the mana roads engraved throughout his body.
